1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a modular jack connector, and particularly to a modular jack connector having a dustproof cover assembled thereto.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 5, Taiwan Patent No. 86207512 discloses a conventional modular jack connector 5 which comprises an insulative housing 50, a plurality of terminals 51 received in a cavity 501 of the housing 50, and a dustproof cover 53 assembled to a mouth of the cavity 501 for preventing dust from entering into the cavity 501 and degrading terminals 51 in the cavity 501. The dustproof cover 53 comprises a pair of pivots 531 at two opposite sides thereof and the housing 50 defines a pair of slots 502 at a front wall 503 thereof. The dustproof cover 53 is assembled to the housing 50 with the pivots 531 received in the slots 502. With this design, the pivot 531 of the dustproof cover 53 easily inserts into the slot 502, but also easily moves out of the slot 502 under vibration. Thus, the seal between the dustproof cover and the housing 50 is not reliable. In addition, when the dustproof cover 53 is to be detached from the housing 50, an additional tool (not shown) is needed to aid in separating the dustproof cover 53 from the housing 50. Finally, the dustproof cover 53 and the housing 50 are two separate parts; thus, the dustproof cover 53 can be lost when the dustproof cover 53 separates from the housing 50. Hence, an improved modular jack connector having a dustproof cover is required to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art. A copending application Ser. No. 09/746,247 filed Dec. 21, 2000 with the same assignee and one common inventor, discloses another approach using a linear insertion of the cover blocking the cavity of the modular jack.
A first object of the present invention is to provide a modular jack connector having a dustproof cover which can be pivotally secured in the modular jack connector to prevent the dustproof cover from being lost from the modular jack connector.
A second object of the present invention is to provide a modular jack connector having a dustproof cover requiring no additional assembling tools to aid in separating the dustproof cover from the modular jack connector.
A third object of the present invention is to provide a modular jack connector having a dustproof cover occupying a small amount of space in the modular jack connector.
A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a modular jack connector having a dustproof cover which can be securely engaged with a housing of the modular jack connector.
A modular jack connector in accordance with the present invention comprises an insulative housing, a plurality of terminals, a dustproof cover, and a shield. The housing defines a cavity in a front wall thereof and the terminals are received in the cavity. A pair of slots is defined in the front wall and a pair of block portions is formed on a top wall of the housing. The dustproof cover comprises a main body, a channel defined in an upper portion of the main body, a resilient fastener extending from a back face of the main body below the channel and partly extending through the channel, and a pair of pivots extending from opposite sides thereof. The resilient fastener comprises an abutting portion extending upwardly and a spring end portion connecting with the abutting portion and partly extending through the channel. The shield comprises a front face with a mounting mouth defined therein which is wider than the main body of the dustproof cover. The dustproof cover is firstly mounted to the front wall of the housing with the pivots received into the slots. The shield encloses the housing with the pivots of the dustproof cover blocked by the front face of the shield from moving out of the slots. When the dustproof cover is closed against the housing, the abutting portion of the resilient fastener extends into the cavity of the housing and abuts against the block portions of the top wall of the housing. To open the dustproof cover, the spring end portion is pushed downwardly so that the abutting portion moves downwardly and disengages from the block portions of the housing, whereby the dustproof cover swings to an open position.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.